What does it do? Stork Job
by Age of the Geek
Summary: Parker and Hardison find out they share more than a love for plants and grow closer in the process


The briefing had been so brutal. Parker wasn't sure she was going to make it through it. This assignment hit too close to home. The thief felt as if she had no one to talk to. They all grew up with family, a nice normal childhood. Parker had no idea what normal was but knew she was far from normal. She was shaking violently now and could barely pour the water for....she had yet to name her plant and was in no condition to do so now. Yet, this is where she felt the most comfortable besides Hardison. He had a grandmother to raise him so she doubted he could fully understand what she was going through. Parker finally managed to steady herself. Talking to the plant would have to wait for now.

Hardison was drained. He had been downing orange sodas since the briefing ended. The way Parker had spoken about Luka was passionate and came from bitter experience. Alec knew her upbringing was rough but the slight mischief that usually made her eyes sparkle was gone. Her beautiful eyes showed nothing but sadness. The binge was brought on by something more though. Something he did not want to think about right now. He needed his head clear for the mission but realized either he or Parker could derail it.

Belgrade's cold dark and gray weather conditions fit Parker's mood to a tee. She wanted to be far away from this place but when she inquired as to why Sophie could not be the inside woman, Ford and Devereaux shared a knowing glance but did not disclose the secret. Everyone and everything was bugging her, even Elliot's bragging about his prowess. He meant no harm but she felt so uncomfortable in her skin. The thief made contact with the marks but lost them soon after. Parker was very distracted and it was making her sloppy. The thief stood on the balcony but could not enjoy the view. She was so off her game, she didn't even notice the Serb walk up next to her.

Alec missed the creature comforts of the HQ. Yet, it made Sophie and Nate realize how much work he put into the home office. He was not able to stock the empty building but after the last job the Hacker made sure to have plenty of orange soda on hand. The mission was turning his stomach and the beverage was the only thing that could settle it. He also noticed Nate was a little rattled. He could not tell if it was because they were on Sophie's home turf or that Irina reminded him of Miss Devereaux, Ford was definitely not focused entirely on the mission. Then, the mark approached Parker with lines more out of date than Dracula's wardrobe. Alec tried to hide his disgust but when he could not, Parker got an earful. She called out his name just as Vlad asked hers. The mark assumed it was hers and commented on how beautiful it was. For the second time since he had teamed up with this band of thieves, Alec felt like he wanted to throw up. He took a long swallow of soda to keep the bile down. Vlad sprung another corny line and Alec responded in kind.

Parker suppressed a laugh, barely. Only Hardison could make her laugh on such a demanding assignment. She noted that he appeared distracted as well. The thief hoped it wasn't because of the dime store Casanova. His "ick" factor was off the charts. She made this assumption before she found out who Vlad reminded her of.

Hardison thought it odd he was supposed to be the one with attention deficit, yet all his teammates had serious focus issues at the moment Nate was trying to figure out if Sophie had ever run game on him. Devereaux ignored Ford's questions the best she could but she enjoyed pulling his chain. Elliot was too busy proving he could mack any type of female. And Parker had her issues from the start. Nate and Sophie were professionals but the banter reminded him of Moonlighting and not the good early years. He called them over to ID Vlad and he was worse than they thought. Although Alec wanted to dig more, the party descended into chaos.

The fact that Dracula's kidnapping of Luka blended with Parker's childhood memories was the final straw for the mentally fragile thief. The images became a blur and she just wanted to run and hide. Then the Serb inched closer, brushing Parker's arm. She could take no more. The thief reached for the nearest weapon, which happened to be a fork, and jabbed it into Dracula's chest area. She then looked for a place to run. A guard blocked her only exit. Then, she recalled the balcony and the flagpole underneath. She dove without a moment's hesitation, grabbing the pole and climbing across to an open window.

After, Elliot explained what occurred; Hardison kicked himself for not acting on the signs. He knew this assignment might be too much for Parker. Heck, they all did but he felt as though she was his responsibility and he had failed her. Alec said out loud what he had been thinking: Parker was gone and might not be coming back. To their surprise, Parker stood only a few feet away when she responded. Nate only shook his head as he thought about how they could steal a movie:

Hardison: Nice to see you back.

Parker: I had nowhere else to go.

Hardison: Parker...if you need to talk.

Alec reached out to touch her arm but she withdrew just muttering she would be fine.

The next day at the movie set, Parker did appear all right. She even manages to laugh it off when Hardison explained why she was not part of the lift job. Parker got a fitful night of sleep and it helped somewhat. But the others were giving her a wide berth. Nate made her nothing more than a glorified gopher. She was very frustrated when she approached Hardison. The hacker was marking some prop guns as he told her it was a matter of trust. The thief agreed but wondered if Nate would trust her during the mission or ever again. The sight of Sophie in a nun outfit lightened the mood considerably. Devereaux was a horrible actress but she kept on trying and Parker admired her inner strength.

It didn't take long for Parker to get her answer about the trust issue. He wanted the thief to tail Irina and report back but Hardison had to tag along. Actually the hacker asked Nate if he could ride with Parker and he thought it was a good idea. She was grateful for the company. Alec asked her to come to the back of the van first. Parker just knew Hardison was about to lecture her about not doing anything drastic. Yet, all he did was hand her a mini flashlight attached to a strap. She looked puzzled:

Hardison: For a person who likes to crawl in small dark places, I figured you could use appropriate gear.

Parker smiled. It was simple but sweet the way he looked out for her:

Hardison: Put it on and make sure it is secure. Snap, your laces are untied.

Before Parker could bend down, Alec was putting the finishing touches on a perfect bow:

Hardison: You just worry about the headlight. I don't want if falling off at the wrong time.

Parker drove like a mad woman to match Irina's reckless behavior. The thief was determined not to lose the kidnapper and botch another task. She pulled up aside a warehouse. Parker was outside when Alec told her the secondary function of the headlight:

Parker: You guys really don't trust me.

Hardison: That is not it. I don't want to sit in the van with no eyes. I need to see what is going on. I...we trust you.

Parker was soon inside staring at big men with even bigger guns. She asked why an orphanage would require such well-armed men. Alec responded with a good quip. The thief scampered up to the ceiling to avoid being caught by a guard doing a patrol. Alec got dizzy from watching from her perspective. He was determined to ask how she could perform such amazing stunts. Hardison told her that was enough recon but Parker wanted to know more. She ducked behind a door to avoid detection and happened upon a dismal scene; a dozen of children, none older than 12 living in squalid conditions. She felt Hardison's pain when he spoke. She knew no child should have to live like this but it was common. The people she was avoiding were coming into the room and she had to hide quickly. Parker watched as Irina gathered Luka and went her way. She wanted nothing more than to run away as fast possible. On her way out, Parker spotted some new people looking a large wooden crate. She put her own feelings aside and went to down to investigate. Just when she thought matters could not get worse, Parker saw the contents of the box.

Hardison drove while calling Nate and letting him know of the new complication. Parker began squirming so much that she had to unbuckle her seat belt. She begged Hardison to stop and jumped out of the van before he completely did so. She was in so much mental pain but he did not try to comfort her after the last time. He decided to let her get things off her chest. Alec had no idea she was hiding such raw emotion. The system had done a job on her. Parker was so decimated; the thief was talking about scrubbing the mission altogether. Hardison knew this was not Parker talking. She was fearless and would never think of leaving one child behind, let alone a dozen. He had to give her some hope and made up his mind to recall his life in foster care. She thought he had been raised by his grandmother. Now she knew otherwise. Parker still felt like anyone who grew up like that would be damaged like her. Alec could not let that statement go unopposed. He liked the quirks, mischief, and downright craziness of the thief known only as Parker. Anything else would be a lie and not quite right. Hearing Hardison's story and how he felt about her true nature made Parker feel a little better about herself and the situation. She still wanted to run but could not let the team down again.

The group had a sit-down to discuss options. Nate was pragmatic as ever. He pointed out Luka was the primary objective and they were not set up to rescue the others. Hardison spoke up, thinking Parker had his back. She once again vetoed the idea. Alec would not believe her true nature was to run and abandon the kids. The rest agreed with Nate though. Hardison was stunned by the decision and Parker. He walked away to drown himself in some orange soda. Parker could barely look Hardison in the eye. He was going through some of the same drama she was but he was willing to fight and risk it all to save the kids. He had been there for her but her own fears and insecurities would not allow her to back his play. She wanted to go after him but felt ashamed of herself.

Parker waited until Luka was safe and sound before going back to the orphanage for the children. Nate and the others were right. It would have been suicidal for them to tackle the arms dealers. It was right up her alley though. The thief remembered Hardison's face as he left the room. She did not want anything to happen to him or anyone else and decided to act alone. Parker forgot she knew very little of the language and had a hard time getting them to understand. When she got them with the only phrase she knew might have the desired effect, Dracula had appeared. Parker was not scared this time. She was more concerned about getting the orphans to freedom. Dracula was bigger and stronger but the thief was determined and had some hidden talents. Her acrobatic skills more than made up for the size discrepancy and Parker left the kidnapper/arms dealer sprawled on the floor. Now she had to get the kids out of harm's way. She could believe she had no exit strategy. Parker's mantra was exit strategy before all else. Even if she did get the children out of the building, transportation would still be a problem. Parker heard a British voice from above and was happy to see Sophie. The team, no, her family had come to the rescue. Devereaux led her out, Elliot took care of the rear guard, and Nate drove the bus. Parker did not see Hardison and assumed he was working the speakers. All of the sudden, Nate stopped the bus with the guards right behind them. As the men took aim, Parker placed her body in the door to block the bullets. Her body convulsed as if her body was being riddled with shots. There was no pain though or blood though. In fact, there was no sign of gunplay except for the sound rifles firing. Parker looked stunned and so did the guards. Then, Hardison appeared out of nowhere and he was holding a....detonator?

Alec saw the return of Luka as bittersweet. He was happy to see the child with parents who loved him but the memories of the ones left behind disheartened him. Hardison wanted to put some distance between him and this retched country. Nate mentioned that Parker was nowhere to be found. Hardison was so disappointed with the decision from the night before; he forgot how much Parker was struggling. He planned for that contingency though. When he "tied" Parker's laces in the van, he placed a micro GPS under the tongue of the shoe. He saw she was going back to the orphanage. Alec wanted to scream he knew Parker would not abandon the kids. Then, he became sick because he knew Parker was acting alone and not in the right frame of mind. He put the pedal into the floorboard and headed back to the movie set. Nate had formulated a plan but needed a few things and so did Hardison. When they arrived at the orphanage, Nate and Elliot went to switch out the guns while Sophie searched for Parker and the kids. Alec snuck away and placed his fire special effect device next to some fuel drums. It was not enough to get the orphans but he wanted to burn this hellhole down to the ground. Maybe then, Parker could get some closure and so could the kids. Alec was so angry that the thief acted alone. He could not think of life without Parker. She got him to repel and although she was a wild card, the team needed her. Hardison heard the gunfire and knew it was time. Nate verified over the earpiece that the building was empty. He calmly strode out the warehouse, without looking at the men, focusing only on Parker. He wanted to relay with his eyes that what came next was for her. Parker was still shocked to be among the living so when an explosion destroyed the so-call orphanage, she could not believe her eyes. Hardison ran up to the bus and sat next to Parker. The spent thief put her head on Hardison's shoulder and let herself smile for the first time in days.

The bus had to stop for Elliot to change the license plate and Nate told Parker the plan for the kids. She was happy they would be taken care of by refutable people. Sophie asked about her death scene and when Elliot told her there was no film in the camera, both Nate and Elliot had fear in their eyes. There were many ways for the pseudo actress to hurt them and neither man would see it coming. Parker could not help but smile as Nate used one of Hardison's catchphrases to describe how he felt about Elliot telling Devereaux the truth. They were really rubbing off on each other. Heck, Hardison was even blowing up stuff. Although Parker had some idea of how they found her, she wanted to know for sure. Nate verified Alec was indeed the culprit. She approached him cautiously because even though the hacker let her rest her head on his broad shoulders, he had not spoken a word to her. When he did, the floodgates opened and he let her have it. Never had a scolding felt so good to Parker. She then acknowledged they were more than a team and had to get used to it. Hardison used all his geek power to suppress the big grin that came across his face when Parker turned away. The team was now a family and it felt good.

Parker came into the office late one night soon after they got back home. She wanted some alone time with Alec. The name came to her on the long flight home. Hardison had proven to be a loyal and special friend. He had suggested the plant which was now was a great source of comfort. She gathered a couple of bottles of water and sat down next to Alec:

Parker: Hardison utilized his special geek powers to find me when I needed him the most and plus he listened to me and my sob story. He came from the same system and turned out all right. Maybe there is hope for me after all. I never told anyone how bad it was.

Parker leaned forward, took a deep breath, and bared her soul. She talked until the sun came up but for the first time, she felt a great weight had been lifted. The thief went to the window and opened them wide. For the first time, Parker was able to enjoy a sunrise.


End file.
